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WSU cries Wulff; Turner shouts “No Mas”

Paul Wulff isn’t a sexy hire for Washington State, but the Cougars turned to a coach who draws high marks for what he accomplished at Eastern Washington and for his personal story of great perseverance.

He knows the area. A former Coug, he knows the program.

Moreover, he strikes me as the sort who won’t immediately start nosing around for other jobs the moment he tastes success.

I don’t know him, but my gut tells me he’ll get WSU back to a bowl game in a couple of years.

When the authority over Tyrone Willingham’s fate completely transferred to UW president Mark Emmert — and no one really denied it — it stripped Turner of his most basic power: hiring and firing within his own department.

Turner wanted to keep Willingham without reservation. Emmert ultimately went that way also, but not without considerable and contentious discussion.

With the Husky fan base so divided over the decision to retain Willingham — a decision that many UW fans blame on Turner — this almost feels like an offering to the disgruntled masses.

You don’t get Willingham’s head on a platter but you do get Turner’s.

Moreover, the stadium renovation muddle continues to aimlessly drift with no easy — or affordable — solution in sight.

So, the new AD will inherit a football coach who’s operating under a “win or else” order and a massive, critical and, so far, unfunded stadium project.

Enjoy.

Turner, knowing my SEC roots, had many conversations with me about facilities and how outdated they were at Washington (We both rolled our eyes over the track — yuck — at Husky Stadium). We both shrugged our shoulders over the “arms race,” knowing it wasn’t a good thing while also recognizing that it was the reality and to reject it meant falling behind.

As for Turner, I like and respect him. He always returned calls. He always answered tough questions. He was honest. He was a good storyteller.

He deserves credit for restoring integrity to an athletic department that had been mired in scandal.

But he also leaves behind a football program that is stuck in the worst rut in its long and distinguished history.

Here’s a guess that Emmert will be looking for a Mike Lude-type, someone who recognizes that football is the revenue engine of all successful athletic departments, while also respecting the non-revenue sports and their needs.